Wednesday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time

Holiness Starts in the Heart

When I hear today’s first reading, I picture someone being drawn toward the light.

The Queen of Sheba travels a long distance because she has heard about a wisdom that is different — something deeper, something rare. And when she arrives, what strikes her most is not Solomon’s wealth or power, but his reverence for the Lord.

She realizes his wisdom doesn’t come from cleverness.

It comes from his relationship with God.

[pause]

So what does that mean for us — here, on an ordinary weekday?

In the Gospel, Jesus turns people’s thinking upside down.

The focus had been on external purity — rules, washing, appearances.

But Jesus points deeper.

It’s not what goes into us that separates us from God.

It’s what comes out of the heart — pride, envy, resentment, harsh judgment.

[pause]

And if we’re honest, that’s where most of us struggle —

not in big dramatic ways,

but in small daily moments…

how we speak to someone,

how quickly we judge,

how long we hold onto irritation.

St. Augustine said, God sees not your ornaments, but your conscience.

It’s not the outside that matters most.

It’s the heart.

The Queen of Sheba recognized true wisdom because it pointed beyond Solomon to God.

And Jesus tells us true holiness starts inside — when we let God shape our hearts.

[pause]

So today, as we come to the Eucharist, maybe the prayer is simple:

Lord, show me what is in my heart —

and give me the grace to let You heal it.

Because this isn’t about guilt.

It’s about invitation.

And if the heart is in order,

everything else slowly begins to follow.